Richard the Lionheart

Richard I "the Lionheart" of England (8 September 1157-6 April 1199) was King of England from 6 July 1189 to 6 April 1199, succeeding Henry II of England and preceding John of England.

Biography
The third son of King Henry II of England and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, he was raised in France (there is no evidence that he even understood the English language) and put down rebellions against his father's rule in Poitou at the age of sixteen, although he later took part in a failed rebellion against his father in 1174 with his brothers. Richard would succeed his father on his death in 1189, and Richard took part in the Third Crusade, campaigning in Sicily and Cyprus en route to the Holy Land. Richard intervened in local Sicilian politics, slowing down his advance, and he conquered Cyprus from the Byzantine Empire, granting Cyprus to the Templar Order in 1190.

Although he ultimately failed in his objective of taking Jerusalem from the Saracens, he was famous for his victories against Saladin, including the siege of Tyre and the battle of Arsuf in 1192. Richard made enemies with Leopold V of Austria and Philip II of France while taking part in the crusade, and he was captured while returning home; he was forced to pay a large ransom to his captors in order to be released. Richard was killed by a crossbow bolt while besieging Chalus Castle in Aquitaine while on campaign against the Kingdom of France, and he is a legend in both England and France due to his defense of Christendom and his military genius.